“$60,000 to bury a damn Mexican” – The Daily Beast

Donald Trump raged when he learned that the funeral bill for Vanessa Guillén – the US soldier who was sexually assaulted and gruesomely murdered by a male soldier at Fort Hood in 2020 – cost $60,000, a bombshell report revealed on Tuesday .

The outburst came after Trump invited Guillén's relatives to the White House and offered to pay for her funeral. The Atlantic reported.

Guillén, a 20-year-old Mexican-American from Houston, was buried on August 15, 2020 in her hometown. Months later, in December, Trump reportedly asked his advisers at a meeting, “Did they charge us for the funeral?” How much did it cost?”

When an aide responded “yes” to the total amount of the bill, Trump reportedly became confused. “It doesn’t cost $60,000 to bury a damn Mexican,” he said, according to people at the meeting who spoke to him Atlantic.

The magazine reported that Trump then turned to his chief of staff, Mark Meadows, and ordered him: “Don’t pay it!” This order was apparently followed by Meadows, as the Atlantic reported that Trump never sent a dime to cover the murdered woman's funeral costs.

Trump was reportedly still angry about the bill later the same day, claiming that Guillén's grieving family was trying to take advantage of his wealth.

“Can you believe it?” he said, according to a witness. “Damn people trying to rip me off.”

Alex Pfeiffer, a spokesman for Trump, said in a statement to the Atlantic that Trump never called Guillén a “fucking Mexican.”

“President Donald Trump never said that,” he said. “This is an outrageous lie The Atlantic two weeks before the election.”

The statement published by The Atlantic did not mention the Trump campaign's denial that he had evaded paying the bill. And that's despite his promising recordings this summer: “If I can help you with the funeral, I'll help you – I'll help you with that.” I'll help you along. I’ll help you financially.”

Natalie Khawam, the Guillén family's lawyer, said Atlantic that the cost of the funeral – attended by the mayor of Houston and the city's police chief – was covered by donations and in part by the U.S. Army. She also forwarded a note from Guillen's sister, Mayra Guillén, praising Trump.

“I am beyond grateful for all of the support President Donald Trump has shown our family during this difficult time,” the statement said. “I have witnessed firsthand how President Trump honors the service of our nation’s heroes. We are grateful for everything he has done and will continue to do to support our troops.”

An investigation following Guillén's death found that her base had enabled the formation of a “permissive environment for sexual assault and sexual harassment.” As a result of the investigation, 14 base employees were either fired or disciplined. It uncovered 217 unreported reports of sexual harassment and 93 credible reports of sexual assault.

Fort Hood, as it was known for decades, was renamed Fort Cavazos last year.

“Your daughter was tragically murdered in our hands, and I am responsible,” Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville told the Guillén family after her killing. “We are responsible for that.”